This year’s WrestleMania 31 was one of the biggest yet, and SummerSlam looks to build on the hype that was reaching fever pitch at the end of July’s WWE Battleground. So far, 2015 has been a massive success for the sports entertainment juggernaut that many had begun to count out amid drops in TV ratings and waning popularity. However, the success of the online-enabled WWE Network and increased focus on top-notch pay-per-view events has paid off in spades for Vince McMahon and company.

While TV ratings may have dropped to a near-all time low for the industry, more of this can be contributed to the decline of network and cable television rather than the WWE itself. Despite the dip in ratings, the company is doing just fine and announced the highest quarterly revenue in company history for the first quarter of 2015.

A new crop of bankable stars along with a concerted effort to shift to a more interactive and on-demand model with fans has helped the company stay ahead of the curve and remain afloat in a business that sees many others continuing to flounder. One thing that continues to pique interest among fans and casual sports enthusiasts alike is the increased ubiquity of gambling on professional wrestling events. It’s totally legit and, you know, a thing that you can actually do. While you can’t place a wager on regular events like “RAW,” for example, many bookmakers offer odds on the larger events like WrestleMania and SummerSlam with tons of fun side bets.

For us, if you’re going to do some sports betting, you need to do it right and that means Vegas (if you can swing it, of course). We think the best place to sit down and watch it all go down is definitely the MGM Grand with its plush leather seats, plenty of space and veritable ton of TVs. The casino’s sports booking service has 36 different 60-inch screens and 24 different 42-inch screens. You’ll never watch wrestling the same way again and there’s no better way to make sure you catch every inch of the action. Read the rest of this entry →